Stuck in the Past
by CrazifiedAngel07
Summary: What would happen if Kakashi, Sakura, Naruto, and Sai were stuck in Kakashi's past? Will they make it home? Will Love blossom on their journey? A KakaSaku and NaruSai fanfic.
1. Chapter 1

Authors note: Special Thanks to my awesome Beta ocean23. She has done amazing things with this story and added some completely awesome ideas. Note that this is my first fanfiction and the original chapter was horribly written. Once again, Thank you.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto and if I did, I would be the happiest person in the world!

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Cold air washed over her as the wind blew through her pink hair.

"Ugh, where is Kakashi-Sensei? It is 3 am; we were supposed to leave three hours ago!" She said to Naruto and Sai, her eyebrow twitching in annoyance.

Naruto just sighed and mumbled, "Late as always. Really, what did you expect, Sakura?"

Sai just sat there, fake smile plastered on his face. "I expected him to be on time just this once. Why doesn't he take these things seriously?"

Suddenly a voice behind them said, "Why doesn't who take things seriously?"

"Kakashi-sensei, you're late!" Sakura and Naruto yelled at the same time.

"Well..." Kakashi scrambled for an excuse. "You see, I was on my way here when a black cat crossed my pa-"

"Liar!" They both exclaimed.

"You were reading that dirty book of yours again!" Naruto accused.

Kakashi just sweat-dropped. That's when he noticed exactly how his team was dressed: each one was clad in a brand new Anbu uniforms, their new masks clutched in their hands.

_That's right._ Kakashi remembered. _Ít's their first official mission as Anbu of Konoha._ And today he was their new Anbu Captain; when it came down to that, he could understand them being upset about him being late .

"Well, if that's what you think I was doing, then I guess I can go back to reading and you'll never find out what your mission is," he said to his companions.

"Thanks a lot, Naruto! Now you've gone and made him mad!" Sakura accused, advancing on a suddenly cowering Naruto.

"What is the mission, Kakashi-sensei?" Sai asked with his creepily fake smile, getting Sakura and Naruto to both look up.

"Tonight we are going to Mist to investigate a strange phenomenon that is occurring in the outskirts of the village," Kakashi said, suddenly serious. "We are to find the problem and eliminate as soon as possible. Team Shikamaru will be coming in later as reinforcements. We are to get there in exactly three days. Understand?" They all nodded in unison. "Good, now let's move out."

And just like that, they were off


	2. Chapter 2

****Disclaimer: Do you really think I own Naruto?

**Chapter 2**

The group was well on their way towards the Mist village. Kakashi was positive that they were going to get their at least a day early.

At least, that was what he thought until Naruto said, "Kakashi-Sensei! I'm hungry!"

Kakashi sighed but did come to a complete stop. Summoning Pakkun and telling the ninja dog to search the area for any nearby enemies, he turned to the three impatient teenagers and said, "Okay everybody. We'll make camp here tonight and leave early in the morning. I'll start the fire; Sakura, you'll get wood; Naruto'll catch some fish, and Sai'llset up the tents."

Each one dashed off to complete their tasks, while Kakashi just smiled underneath that mask of his. Sitting under a nearby tree and pulling out his favourite book, he thought as he started reading, _'They didn't even notice that I was doing less work.'_

Walking through the forest, Sakura was gathering wood as she'd been instructed, when she thought she heard a noise. Going in the direction of said noise, she almost couldn't believe what she found.

Apparently, when Naruto said he was hungry, he had meant something else entirely. Otherwise, why else would Naruto and Sai be standing in the pond, shirtless, making out?

_'Well, at least one of us is happy,'_ she thought, shaking her head in disbelief. Turning away from the sight in front of her, Sakura just decided to put the matter out of her mind.

Naruto pulled away from Sai, hardly able to believe what just happened.

He was just catching fish when, out of the blue… Sai came up and kissed him.

Naruto hardly knew what to think. Was it just some romantic notion of Sai's?

Pulling away, Sai looked down at the book in his hand and said, "My book said kissing is one way to get closer to someone you care about." He looked up at Naruto and smiled that same creepy smile. "I feel closer to you already." He walked off to finish his job, acting as if nothing had ever happened.

Naruto just stood there, completely speechless for once. 'Did that really just happen?' he thought.

In the end, there was nothing he could do except going back to catching fish. Although, he did slightly wonder where the heck Sai was getting all these books from.

Kakashi was just getting to a 'good part' in his book...when he heard a twig snap at the edge of the clearing. Quickly hiding the book away, he looked up and realized that it was just Sakura, carrying an especially heavy-looking armload of wood. He walked over and took half from her in an effort to ease her burden. She smiled softly in thanks, then realized something.

"What have you been doing while I was getting the wood?" she asked him.

"Reading," he replied with a smile, "couldn't start a fire without wood, could I?"

"So, you have been doing nothing this whole time while we were working our butts off?" she asked, angry glare pointed at someone besides Naruto for a change.

"No. I told you before that I was reading." He stated matter-of-factly.

"YOU BAKA!" she yelled as she punched her arm outwards at him.

He avoided the punch easily and said, "Sakura, if you injure me then you won't have a fire to cook your fish on." Seeing that her anger wasn't about to abate, he quickly added, "And I doubt you want Naruto to start it. Unless you want to be eating your fish raw?" Sakura blinked, and then sighed in defeat. Kakashi was right; if they let Naruto start the fire, then they'd be waiting all night.

The rest of the night went off without a hitch (mostly), and soon it was Sakura's turn to be on watch duty.

Turning towards the pinkette, Kakashi noticed her sleeping soundly. Apparently, she'd been more tired than she'd thought when she'd offered to take this watch. 'Well, I guess I stand guard for her.' He thought.

And with that, he continued to read his lovely little orange book.

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A/N: This chapter has been edited by my completely awesome Beta ocean23. Thanks for your ideas and you super ninja editing skills:)


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Special thanks to my lovely beta reader ocean23:) Any ideas that were not previously in this chapter belong to her.

**Disclaimer** I do not own Naruto and if I did I would be the happiest person in the world:D

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**Chapter 3**

They were an hour away from Mist village and Kakashi could already sense the difference in the air.

He didn't know why but, he a really bad feeling about this whole situation. Mist and Leaf have never been on what one would say were good terms, at least not before the war. Something was definitely amiss; he just couldn't put his finger on it.

Why had the Mizukage requested Naruto's group specifically?

He looked at Naruto from the corner of his eye and wondered how the boy could be so oblivious to his surroundings. Turning towards Sai, he realized that he didn't know him very well; he did know, though, that the boy was looking for acceptance and normalcy. Also, the boy seemed to have feelings for Naruto that weren't just ones of friendship or camaraderie.

Finally, he looked at Sakura. Her pink hair flowed behind her, and he silently watched breathlessly, because _when_ exactly had she gotten so beautiful? He knew he had feelings for the pinkette that went beyond any teacher-student relationship, but somehow he couldn't bring himself to tell her. _It's taboo_, he thought. A teacher wasn't supposed to fall in love with his student.

And yet he couldn't help but wonder... _what it could have been like if it wasn't taboo?_

An hour more of travel found them standing in the Mizukage's office. Sakura, Sai and Kakashi were all standing tall, masks in place and motionless as statues. Naruto, on the other hand, was slouched and moping, mask in his hand. The Mizukage had wanted proof of their identities, and so Naruto had ended up removing his mask by way of proving that they were who they claimed to be.

Upon seeing that they were telling the truth, Mei briefed them about their mission. "You are to go to the outskirts of the village and investigate a strange phenomenon that has appeared. It looks as though it is a portal, but we cannot get close enough to it to analyze it more. Our researchers that went said that they felt like it was beckoning for them to enter it. After you investigate, you are to determine whether or not it is a threat and if you feel the need, destroy it at all costs. You are dismissed." She said flashing a wink toward Kakashi, who inwardly cringed.

As they exited the room, Kakashi noticed the Mizukage smile almost evilly. His one visible eye narrowed, but decided to ignore the instinct that there was something she wasn't telling them.

Little did he know that his suspicions would soon prove correct.

The Mizukage had something up her sleeve.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer** I do not own Naruto and if I did I would be the happiest person in the world:D

A/N: I would like to thank all the people who reviewed, followed, and favorited this story. Being a first time author, you guys have no idea how much it means to me to get your feedback. I will try to make the chapters longer because, A. Someone said the chapters were short, (but they still said they liked the story!) and B. I know personally when I read a fanfiction I want the chapters to be long but not so long that it jumbles the story together and seems rushed. I will try to update as much as possible.

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"Find anything yet?" Kakashi called out to the scattered members of his team.

"No!" Naruto answered, his annoyance at their lack of success leaking into his voice.

"I found something, you guys!" Sakura suddenly called out from somewhere off to Kakashi's right. After alerting Naruto and Sai, the three male members of the team quickly headed over to where their pink-haired teammate was waiting. _Just like the Mizukage described it, _Kakashi thought. _A portal-like opening that pulls you towards it._

"Alright, team, let's get started. Naruto, you-" Turning towards the blonde, he noticed that the boy was slowly working his way closer to the portal-like entity. "No! Naruto, don't move any closer!" he shouted.

Naruto looked over at him. "Kakashi-sen-"he started to say, just as he was sucked into the portal's grasp. Staring in bewilderment at the strange opening, Kakashi wasn't fast enough to stop Sai as he ran into the portal after Naruto.

"Those bakas." Sakura said out of the blue. "How could they be so careless?"

"Well, you know Naruto. He's Konoha's number one knucklehead ninja for a reasaon," Kakashi stated matter-of-factly.

"Well, should we go after them?" she said.

"I think we should." He said.

And with that they were off.

Naruto woke up suddenly, surrounded by a familiar forest near an all-too-familiar village.

_How did I get to Konoha? _He thought as he tried to get up. It soon proved impossible, seeing as there was an unconcious Sai sprawled across Naruto's back. Poking Sai in the ribs, it didn't take long for the oblivious teen to wake up, groaning as he regained conciousness.

"Naruto?" Sai asked blearily.

"No, it's Santa Claus," Naruto deadpanned. "Who do ya think it would be?" He said upon seeing Sai's confused expression. Honestly, for all of the books that Sai read on how to act like a normal person, he still hadn't learned what sarcasm was.

Sai looked at him. "Are you okay?" he asked worriedly.

"Yeah, except for the fact that you are SQUISHING ME!" he yelled the last part. Sai just kind of laughed silently as he got off of Naruto's back.

Looking around, it didn't take long for Sai to ask the same question as Naruto had at first. "So how did we get in Konoha anyway?"

Naruto turned to his emotionless friend and shrugged. "I guess that portal thing brought us here." He looked off in the general direction of the Mist Village. "I wonder if Sakura and Kakashi-sensei are alright."

"We should check our surroundings and confirm our location. If we really are in Konoha, then we can report to Tsunade-sama that the strange entity led us back here. And that it can prove dangerous should we get into a war with Mist." With that said, Sai started off in the direction of the village, Naruto following closely behind him.

Groaning awake, Sakura sat up stiffly, rubbing her eyes in an effort to dispell the remaining bleariness in her brain.

The first thing that she noticed was Kakashi, still unconcious and lying next to her. The second thing? They weren't in the Mist Village anymore. Actually, it looked like they were in the training field near Konoha, if anything. But there was something...different about it; everything looked newer, less weathered by the elements.

She heard Kakashi grunt beside her as he slowly got up. "Sakura, we need to go to the Hokage's office."

"Why?" she asked curiously.

"Because the training ground hasn't looked like this since I was thirteen years old."Turning towards her, she could tell that Kakashi wasn't joking from the look in his eyes...well, eye.

Sakura eyes widened as her mind quickly connected the dots. "Kakashi-sensei, are you saying that we might be in the past?"

"Yes. I'm almost positive," he replied. "And don't call me sensei when it's been more than a few years since I was last your teacher in anything."

"Sheesh, okay," Sakura said. Her expression quickly changed to worry when another thought crossed her mind."What if Naruto and Sai somehow managed to mess up the future before we got here?"

"They won't. Sai will notice that things aren't the same and take Naruto to the Hokage tower." He answered. Sakura just nodded in understanding.

Naruto and Sai were almost to the Hokage building when Naruto heard his name being called. Turning in the direction of the shout, he saw Sakura and Kakashi running towards him. "Heading to the Hokage tower as well?" Kakashi asked Sai.

"Yes, I figured it would be more beneficial to go to the Hokage and figure out exactly what time period we are in. Things are too different here to be our present time, and the trees in the forest aren't as aged, so I conclude that we are in the past. Were you heading there as well?" he said, mouth never even changing from that smile of his.

"Yes, we wer-" Kakashi began. He was interuppted by a male voice calling out "Who are you?"

Of the four people present in that group, only two recognized the voice.


	5. Chapter 5

Special thanks to my beta Ocean23, who has edited all of my current chapters and ones to come in the future:D

**Disclaimer** I do not own Naruto and if I did I would be the happiest person in the world:D

* * *

Kakashi knew immediately who it was. He hardly knew how to react; if Kakashi called the man by the old title he had once addressed him by out loud, then the man might think he was crazy.

Kakashi turned; it was definitely him, no doubt about it.

Minato Namikaze.

Looking over at Naruto, Kakashi could only guess at what might be going through his head right about now. How were you supposed to react when the father that you never met suddenly appeared before you, alive as anything?

"I'll ask again: who are you?" Minato said, voice starting to get a steely edge, eyes hardening.

They were in the past. There was no other explanation. Kakashi had suspected this, as had all the others, but it was a whole other story when your suspicions are confirmed.

"We were on our way to the Hokage Tower to see the Third Hokage. The name's Yuki Hatake, and this is my team. My cousin Kakashi lives here. I'm sure you heard of him."

Minato stood there, slightly shocked. This man really did look a lot like his silver-haired student; the resemblance was so uncanny that it wasn't even funny. Looking at the three behind Kakashi's supposed cousin, he noticed a blonde-haired boy who could have passed for Minato's little brother...or even his son, if he ever had children.

"What are your names?" he asked the three teenagers.

"I'm Naruto Uzumaki; nice to meet ya!" Naruto yelled before anyone could stop him.

"Uzumaki, huh? My girlfriend's last name is Uzumaki. Any relation between you and her?" he asked. Realizing the blunder he'd made, Naruto frantically tried to think of a believable answer. Then he thought of something.

"No. There is more than one Uzumaki clan. I am from the one that originated from this village. I am the only one left."

I never knew that there was another Uzumaki clan in Konoha, Minato thought, but when he looked at them, they were all wearing anbu uniforms. Instead turning to the other two members, he inquired about their names.

"I'm Sakura Haruno." She knew she could use her real name; the Haruno clan wasn't a ninja clan. Minato nodded and turn towards Sai.

Putting on his best fake (and creepiest) smile, the boy said, "I'm Sai. Pleased to make your acquaintance, dickless number two."

Minato and Kakashi's mouth dropped. Sakura was staring daggers at Sai. Naruto was snickering evilly to himself.

"Um, well okay then. I can escort you guys to the Hokage tower if you want," he said while looking slightly scared of Sai.

They made their way towards the Hokage tower, making small talk as they went. When they arrived, Minato turned to Kakashi and said, "My team and I are going out to eat at Ichiraku's tonight at nine o'clock. I would be thrilled if you and your team would join us. Maybe you can get to know your cousin Kakashi better, Yuki."

He left with a smile.

Naruto turned towards Kakashi and asked, "What are we gonna tell the old man?"

Kakashi shrugged and said, "I just plan on winging it."

"But Kakashi-!" Sakura Started. Kakashi smiled at the lack of honorific but knocked on the door without letting her finish. They heard a faint "come in" and went through the doors.

The third Hokage waited until the group was fully in before speaking. "Who are you?"

Kakashi sighed and said, "I am Kakashi Hatake. This is my team; Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno, and Sai. We come from a time nineteen years into the future. We were on a mission in Mist; a strange portal was open, and when we entered into it, we found ourselves here, stuck in the past with no way home."

The Hokage was clearly flabbergasted at the story he'd just heard. It was a hard pill to swallow, but what choice did he have other than to believe them. He could see the likeness between the man in front of him and Minato's young student; he would have had to be blind to not notice the blonde-haired boy who looked like he could have been Minato's son. If they were from the future, it was certainly possible that that's exactly what the boy was, too. Instead of choosing to voice all this aloud, however, he focused in on one detail in their story. "Did you say the Mist?" Kakashi nodded. The Hokage continued. "As you may already know we were in a war with the Mist in the past. There was a certain clan that had a time traveling jutsu; I believe the clan's name was Terumi. We don't know much about it, but we will help in any way we can."

"Hey! Terumi was the Mizukage's last name! Do you think she did this on purpose?" Naruto asked.

Kakashi sighed. "As a matter of fact, I think she did, Naruto." He looked back at the Hokage. "Now, as to our sleeping arrangements..."

XxX

Their sleeping arrangements adjusted, the motley group of ninja headed over to their new home. It had once belonged to the Third Hokage, but be had generously loaned it to them.

Kakashi thought over Minato's offer; Naruto had voiced his desire to go, but Kakashi knew the real reason was for the ramen. The kid simply couldn't resist it. ned it to them. Kakashi was thinking over Minato's offer, Naruto said he really wanted to go but, Kakashi knew the reason for that. Ramen was all the boy ever talked about. Sakura wanted to go to meet his old team; Sai wasn't really interested, but he'd go if everyone else did. Kakashi sighed in defeat and motioned towards the door.

It was lucky (or maybe not so lucky) that they lived fairly close to the ramen shop, and they ended up being five minutes early. The bright yellow hair of Kakashi's former sensei stuck out like a sore thumb, and Kakashi walked towards it almost automatically.

"Hello, Minato," Kakashi greeted.

"Ahh Kakashi, Sakura, Naruto, Sai. Please have a seat," he replied, gesturing to the remaining empty stools. As the group sat down, Rin looked toward the older Kakashi and gasped. "You look exactly like Kakashi-kun," she stated, blinking slightly in surprise.

"I'm his cousin on his father's side," Kakashi said simply.

"My father didn't have any siblings." Younger Kakashi said bluntly.

"They got into a fight; I guess your father wouldn't mention him because of that," Kakashi told his younger self. A few minutes later, a black haired boy with goggles on his head came running in.

"I'm sorry, Minato-sensei! I didn't mean to be late; I ran into a little girl who was crying for her mommy and I just had to help her home," the boy stated breathlessly.

"Obito, I don't need to hear excuses. It's fine; it's only dinner," Minato replied, clearly trying to calm the boy down. In the meantime, Sakura and Naruto sat there, mouths agape. This boy reminded them of their sensei; in fact, Kakashi had recently used that exact excuse on the last mission they'd done as a team.

Kakashi sighed. He was going to have a lot of explaining to do when they got home.


	6. Chapter 6

Authors Note: Thanks to everyone reading my story. What do you think so far? Is it rushed? Am I updating too fast? Please let me know:)

Special thanks to my lovely beta Ocean23. She has awesome stories, ya'll should check them out:D

Warning!: This chapter contains spoilers from Gaiden. You have been forewarned.

**Disclaimer** I do not own Naruto and if I did I would be the happiest person in the world:D

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It was midnight when they got home; needless to say, everyone was exhausted. Sakura lay in her bed and thought about the night's events and the similarities between the two teams. There was her and Rin with their medical ninjutsu, Naruto and Obito with their need to protect those closest to them, and even Sasuke and young Kakashi with their simple grunts of acknowledgement. On the other hand, though, there was Kakashi and Minato with their obviously differing styles of teaching. Sai...well, he just didn't seem to get along with anyone. It was certainly eye-opening to see how Kakashi used to be when he was young and compare him to the Kakashi that she knew.

I wonder what happened to change him so much, she wondered. Silently resolving to ask Kakashi at the next chance she got, she drifted offf into a peaceful sleep.

XxX

It was morning again, and Naruto had decided almost upon waking up that this would be the morning when Kakashi would tell them about his own past. Just like Sakura, he wanted to know what had changed the Kakashi of this time to the Kakashi they'd had as a sensei. Of course, he decided that he should make everyone pancakes as a bit of an ice breaker. When everyone got up, they were greeted by the sight of a table set for four people...and a pile of burnt pancakes at each seat. They ate their burnt pancakes in silence, until Naruto thought that it was time to get the information that everyone needed.

"Kakashi-Sensei, can you tell us what happened now?" he asked. Kakashi winced; that was the last thing he ever wanted to talk about, and the burden of his past was his alone to bear, in his opinion.

"Kakashi, you've known us all for a long time now; you should know us well enough by now to know that we won't judge you. If you aren't ready to talk about it, though, then you don't have to; just know that we trust you and we want you to be able to trust us too," Sakura said comfortingly. Kakashi blushed under his mask; it wasn't the first time he'd heard those kinds of words, but it somehow meant more when coming from Sakura. He sighed.

"When I was younger," he started slowly, "my dad committed suicide. He went on a mission, and his comrades got severely injured. Instead of going on with the mission and leaving his comrades to die, he brought them back to Konoha; he saved their lives. Others didn't see it that way though; they saw a failed mission and a man who put the lives of his comrades before the orders of his superiors. It wasn't long after they turned against him that he killed himself. After that, my father became a dishonourable shinobi in my eyes. I adhered fiercely to the rules I felt that my father had had no respect for, and I soon became a stick-in-the-mud. When I was promoted to Jounin, I was thirteen years old.

"Everyone got me gifts to congratulate me, everyone except Obito. I gave him a lecture about being on time, and he and I got into a fight. We used to do it all the time, just like Naruto and Sasuke. Something else was going on that day as well; our team was getting ready for war. We went to our assigned area; Minato-sensei went a different route. I lead the team. On the way to our destination, Rin got kidnapped. Obito wanted to go after her and I didn't. He told me that my father was a hero. I still remember his words that day.

"'Those that break the rules and regulations are scum. But those who abandon their comrades are worse than scum. If I'm going to be called scum either way, I'd rather break the rules! And if that's not being a proper shinobi, then I'll destroy that idea!' is what he said to me. He left in a hurry to go after Rin as I sat there and pondered what he said. I finally decided that he was right and went to help, but by the time I got there I lost my left eye. We had successfully saved Rin and were quickly making our escape when a nin came and used a jutsu to smash the entrance of the cave that Rin had been held captive in. I didn't see a boulder coming at me and Obito pushed me out of the way. The boulder landed on him and completely crushed his right side. He told me...that since he didn't give me a gift, he would have Rin transplant his Sharingan into me in place of the eye I'd lost. He said that he would become my eye and asked me to keep Rin safe. With my new Sharingan I perfected Chidori and avenged Obito. But it didn't bring him back. He was still gone.

"I have lived my life as he would have A few years later, Rin died as well. Then Minato-Sensei died when the nine tails attacked, so I'm the only one left. None of my team mates survived besides me."

Everyone sat around the table, each looking at Kakashi differently.

Naruto looked downward, feeling bad for pushing his old sensei into telling him his life story. He knew it would be bad, but he didn't know that it would be that bad. Sakura looked rather sympathetic, to say the least.

Sai, for once, lacked the creepy smile, Kakashi's story enough to make even him feel the slightest bit of sadness for him.

Kakashi was waiting for them to say something, anything really, but they just stayed silent. Getting up, he was about to leave..when he felt a pair of arms wrap around him, felt moisture on the back of his shirt. He turned around to see Sakura crying and apologizing repeatedly. He wrapped his arms around her in an attempt to comfort her.

"It's not your fault, Sakura. I have come to terms with it now."

She looked up at him and said, "Kakashi, I can't tell you that I know the pain you felt; I can make sure you never feel such pain again. If you are injured, I will heal it. If you are lonely, I will be on your doorstep to take the loneliness away. And if you are heartbroken, I will find the pieces and put it together. You don't need to feel pain anymore; I am here." She hugged him tighter. "We will get through this together, I promise." She said in a serious tone. When she finished, he yanked down his mask and kissed her, completely ignoring the rants of an irritated blonde.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: I enjoyed writing this chapter and I hope you all enjoy it too. I would like to thank my beta Ocean23 who edited all the chapters and improved the overall story!

I am going to reply to some reviews so if you dont want to read it, scroll down to the Chapter:)

Kathymoonstone: Your review made me smile to no end. I am glad that you like my update speed and I hope the chapters are long enough now. I didn't want everything to all happen at once and I didn't know how to fill in the blanks. But I really hope you keep reviewing because, I really like reading them.

CherryTree230: Even though you only reviewed the first three chapters, I would like to say thanks. :D

AnneLea: Thanks for your advice to tell me to get a beta reader and for your honest opinion. Both were appreciated.

Now, ON WITH THE CHAPTER!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto and if I did, I would send everyone a present.

* * *

"What the hell, Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto yelled as Kakashi and Sakura separated, Kakashi pulling his mask up over his face.

"Uh, well, you see Naruto," Kakashi started.

"How long has this been going on!?" Naruto asked, interrupting his former teacher. To everyone's surprise Sakura was the one that answered.

"Since now, Naruto. Besides, what happens between Kakashi and me is none of your business. So if you don't mind, would you please butt out?" She stated, tone calm and serious. Kakashi just gawked at her. Did she have feelings for him too? Was his love not one-sided? He hoped to figure out the answers soon enough.

"But Sakura-chan! He was our sensei! He is old enough to be your father!" Naruto yelled at her.

"Naruto, you really need to learn how to do math. The only way Kakashi would be old enough to be my father is if he started having children at fourteen and that is not probable, not even in this time. Seriously, who cares if he was my sensei? We haven't been his students in years. Given a choice between an older, wiser man and a boy who attacks first, asks questions later, I would rather go with someone who at least knows something of the world and how to treat a lady. If you don't like the fact that Kakashi and I are together, then suck it up, 'cause this is the way that it's gonna be from now on," she said bluntly. Kakashi's eyes crinkled in slight amusement and happiness; it would appear that Sakura was at least going to give the relationship a try. He gave Sakura his famous eye crinkle. "Sakura-Chan-"Naruto began but, was abruptly cut off by Sakura. "Naruto, just drop it. All that should matter is that two people you care for are happy." She said.

Sai gazed upon the scene in front of him, mentally sighing. He was happy for them, he really was, but he couldn't help but feel the slightest bit of envy slip into his heart. If only Naruto would take his attention off of them and take notice of him for just one moment. That was the problem, though; he had yet to figure out how to get the blonde-haired, blue-eyed shinobi to pay attention to him, and in this time period he didn't have any books to get ideas from. How exactly did one go about getting the person they liked to notice them, or even like them back? That was one thing he knew his books wouldn't be able to tell him.

Sai had been so lost in thought that he barely noticed when Sakura and Kakashi walked out of the front door. Naruto turned toward him and said, "I can't believe they would do something like this!" Sai sighed, deciding that now clearly wasn't the time for confessing. He set about comforting the blonde; after all, comforting someone you care about tends to bring people closer together. Naruto, on the other hand, was silently muttering about stupid senseis...and just starting to realize that even when Kakashi had kissed Sakura, he still hadn't gotten a glimpse of the weasel's face.

XxX

Sakura and Kakashi walked in companionable silence; they were interrupted by a familiar voice.

"Hey! Are you two on a date?" younger Kakashi asked the two. Sakura blushed when Kakashi said yes.

"Hmph." With his question answered, younger Kakashi quickly ran into the bookstore they were standing outside of. Sakura looked at the man next to her.

"We're on a date, huh?" Sakura asked him. Kakashi turned and gave an eye crinkle.

"Yes Sakura, we are. When we get back to our time, I will take you out on a real date," he said simply. She blushed deeper and they continued their walk. When Kakashi reached out and grabbed her hand, she blushed once again. Darn, why was she blushing so much? It was just Kakashi, after all. She'd as good as said that she liked him, so why was she blushing like a school girl from just him holding her hand?

"Where are we going?" she asked him curiously.

"Where do you want to go?" he challenged.

"Depends; am I paying or are you?" she shot back.

"Me, obviously. What kind of gentlemen would I be if I couldn't pay for our date?" he replied. She laughed.

"You never pay for things, Kakashi; you always dump the bill on us!" she told him.

"Well, seeing as though we are shinobi and not civilians, a normal date is not required. How about we get some take out and have a picnic on the lake in the training grounds?" He asked. She smiled.

"Sounds perfect." It didn't take them long to find a take-out stand and place an order; Kakashi ordered miso ramen, while Sakura ordered a salad. Food in hand, they made a quick detour to a nearby bar, where they bought some sake and two glasses. When they finally got to the training ground, they both sat by the edge of the lake and ate their food. They both stared up at the full moon, taking it as a good sign that things would work out between them. They talked most of the night; finally, Kakashi couldn't help but ask a question that'd been on his mind for the past few minutes. "Sakura?"

"Yes, Kakashi?" she replied.

"When did you start have feelings for me?" he asked. She looked at him and blushed.

"When you, me, and Naruto got back together as a team. But I was afraid that you would always think of me as what I used to be when I was still a newbie genin. I couldn't very well tell you of my feelings," she said matter-of-factly. "How about you?" she asked him curiously.

"Around the same time actually. Sakura, do you realize that we have had feelings for each other for roughly three years and were too afraid to tell each other?" he asked.

"Yes. Do you realize that I will not believe you until you tell me what it is exactly that you feel?" she asked him. He nodded. He knew he wasn't exactly good with telling people his emotions.

"Sakura?" he asked.

"Yes, Kakashi?" she asked in return.

"I love you." He said looking into her eyes. She smiled, her cheeks tainted pink.

"I love you too, 'Kashi" she said back. He raised an eyebrow to the nickname.

"What? I think it is cute!" she said.

"Sakura, I am a man. I do not want to be referred to as 'cute'." He told her.

"Well, I will only call you that when we are alone. Okay?" She asked.

"Fine, Cherry Blossom." Was his only answer.

She got up and they started to make their way home. "Fine, but only you can call me that. Agreed?" she asked him as they walked.

"Agreed." He replied with a smile. They walked into the house, which was dark. As soon as they finally got fully in, a lamp flickered on to reveal a very angry blonde.

"Where the hell were you guys! I have been worried sick! You didn't do anything perverted to her, did you Kakashi-Sensei?" Naruto yelled at them. Kakashi was going to try and calm the blonde down before he said something stupid but, Sakura walked in front of him before he could say anything.

"NARUTO, YOU BAKA!" She yelled angrily as she punched him, Kakashi sweat-dropped. 'Remind me to not make her mad at me.' He told himself, before heading off to bed and bidding Sakura good night.

* * *

Ocean23's in case you didn't know notes!:

Sake: fermented rice wine

Sakura: Japanese word for cherry blossoms.


	8. Chapter 8

Authors Note: Wow, over 1,000 views! I cannot believe that this story has gotten so popular! Thank you guys so much! This is the last thing that I ever expected. This has chapter has been edited by my awesome Beta ocean23. Chapters 1 & 2 have also been edited by her. Her ideas for this fanfiction are absolutely amazing and they do belong to her. Writing this chapter made me laugh. Seriously, my room mates were very concerned. Thanks to all my reviewers! I love all of your guys' awesome reviews and they make me want to write more:)

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto and if I did, I would have let certain characters live.

* * *

The next morning, everyone realized that it was time to get serious. What brought about this sudden change, you ask?

Maybe it has something to do with the fact that on their doorstep stood none other than the Third Hokage himself. He knocked so lightly, it was a wonder that Kakashi even heard him. Opening the door, Kakashi was shocked to see him standing there, fully dressed in his Hokage robes. Waving off his Anbu guards, the leader of the Leaf village walked in, as casual as can be.

"How has the past been treating you Kakashi?" The Hokage asked politely.

Kakashi smiled to himself, remembering what happened last night. "Pretty well Hokage-Sama, pretty well." He replied.

"Do you mind going and waking the others Kakashi? I do have other appointments to attend to." The Hokage asked.

Kakashi sighed. "Yes, Hokage-Sama."

He started with Sai, who already seemed to be awake and drawing. "I know Kakashi-Sempai, I will be in there soon," he said. Kakashi nodded and quickly showed himself out.

Next, he thought, would be Sakura. He lightly knocked on her door and when she didn't answer he quickly invited himself in. Kakashi looked at the pinkette and smiled.

'_She looks so peaceful when she is asleep.' _He thought as he walked toward her bed. Bending down and kissing her on the forehead, he called her name softly, completely forgetting that Sakura was _not_ a morning person. It should have come as no surprise, then, when Sakura slapped him with her superhuman strength, sending Kakashi flying through a wall.

Not just any wall, either, but Naruto's wall. Kakashi conveniently landed on top of said boy, who woke up screaming.

"Kakashi-Sensei, What the hell! First, you try to be pervy with Sakura-Chan and now you are trying to perv me too! No way! I won't have it!" He yelled pushing the silver haired man off of him. Landing on the ground with a thud, Kakashi groaned, "No offense Naruto, but you are really not my type."

Naruto looked up and, noticing the hole in the wall, started snickering, "Heheheh, guess you really got it bad. Eh, Kakashi-sensei?"

xXx

Kakashi had gotten an ice pack for his still sore face.

Sakura had apologized profusely after realizing what she had done.

And Naruto was still silently snickering.

They all gathered around the living room, where the Hokage was still waiting. "I looked into what you had described happening to you. It has been confirmed that it has happened in the past but, the jutsu was untraceable. We will continue to look into it. That being said, I was wondering if you would like to take up some missions while we continue to investigate," the Hokage asked.

Three of the four nodded toward the Hokage.

Holding her head low, Sakura finally spoke up. "Hokage-Sama, I was wondering if I could also take up some shifts at the hospital. I am a very capable medic and I would like to save as many lives as possible while in this time." Sakura asked politely.

"Well, if you are as capable as you say, then how could I say no?" The Hokage answered her.

Smiling, Sakura replied, "Thank you Hokage-sama. You won't regret it."

Kakashi looked at her, wondering what in the world she was thinking. If she saved someone's life in this time, it could possibly affect the future. He wouldn't dare ask her, though. Seeing her look so happy, he decided that he it for her. Not right now.

xXx

By the end of the day, they had received their first mission. It was a D-ranked mission and of course, Naruto was throwing a fit.

"I can't believe the old man gave us such a lame mission!" He repeated for the thousandth time.

Kakashi, sick of listening to it, looed at Naruto sternly and said, "Naruto, he is the Hokage, and I informed him of our previous ranks. He knows that you are a genin and, as such, are only allowed to do C or D ranked missions. I have asked Minato-Sensei if you could take the Chunin exams with Obito and Rin, but you have to keep in mind that this will not pass into the future. If you want to be able to accept higher missions, this is what you must do. Minato-Sensei graciously agreed to let you join his team because he was already looking for a third person to take my spot."

"Kakashi-sensei, when are the Chunin exams?" Naruto asked.

"In two monthes, so I would use all the free time you have after missions to train." Kakashi stated, knowing what was coming next.

"Kakashi-Sensei, will you train me this time?" Naruto asked, looking hopeful.

"No, Naruto. Minato-sensei will be teaching you. You both have wind-style chakra and if you can get him to 'teach' you Rasengan, you can use it in the exams. If you can't, then I am afraid you cannot use it." Kakashi replied.

Almost everything went over Naruto's head, upon hearing who his teacher whould be. "I AM GOING TO BE TRAINING WITH THE FOURTH HOKAGE!" he whooped.

"NARUTO, YOU BAKA! BE QUIET BEFORE SOMEONE HEARS YOU!" Sakura yelled as she smacked him.

Finally, Sai decided to pitch in, "Can we just get this mission over with now? Dickless probably alerted our target as to where we are."

"Don't call me dickless! I can't believe that we have to do this again in the future. I mean, how long can a stupid cat live?" Naruto asked annoyed.

"Who cares. Let's just get it done," Sakura said as they darted toward the trees.

xXx

After the mission was done, they all went for ramen and ran into Team Minato. They ate and talked about their latest missions and the upcoming Chunin exams. Each talked about their preparations.

Rin would be training under Sakura, Obito under older Kakashi, and finally, Naruto under Minato and younger Kakashi.

Tomorrow, preparations for the Chunin exams would commence.


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers, followers, and favoriters out there. Oh and also Thanks to my wonderful Beta ocean 23. She has some awesome stories and I am very honored to have her as a beta reader. Any ideas that she came up with for this chapter are completely hers and let me tell you, I SUCK at fighting scenes which I have previously found out. My ideas for the battles were made better by her.

**Disclaimer: Do you really think I own Naruto?

* * *

It didn't take long to complete their mission the next day. It might have helped that they got up early, though.

Naruto, eager to bein training, headed over to training ground 7, where Minato had said he would meet him. As it turned out, it was the same training ground that Kakashi used to train the former Team 7 on. Where was Minato though?

_Is tardiness something that's passed from sensei to student, or something? _Naruto thought annoyedly. Lost in his own thoughts, Naruto didn't even notice the kunai flying towards him-

Sakura really didn't expect to be attacked while walking around town, so when a kunai whizzed by her, she was caught just slightly off-guard. When Rin jumped out of a nearby tree, fist pulled back and ready to land a punch, however, that was soon changed. Sakura managed to put her arm up and block the other girl's attack, then punch Rin in the stomach with her free hand. Rin was sent flying, but she landed on her feet with a smirk on her lips, although she was clutching her stomach. The hand on her abdomen suddenly started to glow green, making it quite evident that she knew how to heal herself using medical jutsu.

"Rin, you should really wait until we get to a training ground. You wouldn't want to destroy the town, now would you?" Sakura told her with a smile.

_'D-destroy the town? She can't be that strong!' _Rin thought. Sakura started walking then, stopped and looked back at Rin. "Are you coming?"

Nodding, Rin walked toward her. "Okay, Sakura-Sensei."

Sakura gawked at her. _'Sakura-Sensei? Of course, I am teaching her. So, I must be her temporary sensei. Sensei. I like the sound of that' _Sakura thought.

Lost in his own thoughts, Naruto didn't notice the kunai flying towards him-

- until it hit him in the back with a dull thud."What the-?" Turning around, Naruto bent down to pick up the kunai. Its tip was completely flat, almost as if to bruise but not injure. Naruto recognized the specially made kunai as one from the Academy; it was used mainly to teach the students how to hold them correctly. He looked around frantically. Up, left, right, behind. There was no one there. When he finally looked down, it was too late; he found himself almost completely underground. '_I can't believe I fell for that!' _He scolded himself. Minato appeared out of what seemed to be nowhere.

"Never let your enemy catch you off guard." Minato said simply as he helped Naruto up from the ground. Naruto patted the dirt off of himself.

"I knew that. I just wasn't expecting you."

"Well, you aren't going to expect an enemy either Naruto. An enemy isn't going to come out and say, 'Hey, I am going to attack you now. Try not to attack me, okay?'." Minato stated matter-of-factly.

Naruto sighed. "No Minato-Sensei."

Minato just smiled. "Today we are just going to go over the basics. That way, I can know where you are and teach you from there."

It didn't take Sakura and Rin long to get to training field 4, nor did it take long for Sakura to disappear from her new student's line of sight.

"Rin," said a voice behind her that Rin recognized automatically.

"Kakashi-kun," she said happily, turning towards the source of the she saw, though, scared her out of her wits. It was Kakashi-kun, to be certain, but his body was full of kunai and he appeared to be bleeding to death. As a medic ninja, Rin could stand the sight of blood easily, but even she had her limits. It can come as no surprise, then, when she fainted.

Jumping down from her hiding spot, Sakura picked up the unconcious girl. _Wow, we really are alike. To think, she even fell for the same genjutsu that Kakashi-sensei used on me during that first training session together as Team Seven, _Sakura thought almost reminiscently.

Obito waited impatiently for his new sensei. '_And people say I am the late one.'_

Suddenly, there was a _poof_ and Kakashi appeared. "Yo." was his only explanation. Knowing he couldn't lecture him on being late when he himself was the same way, he settled for asking, "Are you going to teach me a new, super-cool jutsu?" Kakashi just laughed.

"Sure," he said, making a few hand signs. Obito looked in front of him, eyes wide; Kakashi wasn't there anymore. In front of him stood Rin, injured. Running up and seeing her blood, he acted just like Rin when she'd been faced with the genjutsu and passed out.

Kakashi laughed; now he and Sakura can continue with their plans for tonight without being bothered.

Mission Get-Naruto-and-Sai-to-Admit-Their-Feelings-for-Eac h-Other was a go.

Naruto sat on the roof by himself, random thoughts of Kakashi's past and their own future floating through his head. The main thing he was wondering about, though, were his own feelings. He didn't know what to do when it came to Sai. How could he tell him that he enjoyed the kiss and explain to him what love is?

He sighed; was he never gonna catch a break when it came to love? Apparently not. Sakura had a thing for Sasuke; Sasuke had a thing for Itachi; Sai was an emotionless wreck.

"Hey Naruto." Sakura said from behind him, quickly snapping him out of his thoughts.

"Yes, Sakura-chan?"

"Wanna go get some Ramen?" she asked him with a smile.

"I thought you were with Kakashi-Sensei." He replied glumly.

"I am, but that doesn't mean I can't hang out with my friend, right?" She asked. Naruto smiled.

"Of course, Sakura-Chan." Getting up and heading in the direction of the ramen shop, Naruto had no idea what Sakura and Kakashi had planned for him.


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: I am happy that I got my first flame. I know that it is a weird thing to be happy about but, at least they read the whole story before reviewing! I know that some people do not like Yaoi pairings no matter how slight they are and I am okay with that. You like what you like and I like what I like. If I am writing a fanfiction that you don't agree with, review and say so. Not that it will stop me from writing, I will write whether you like my fanfiction or not. This is a KakaSaku and NaruSai fanfiction, it says so in the description. So, leave your mean comments. They make me laugh. Or if you like the story, tell me and you will get a big smile and a huge thank you.

Again, I would like to thank my awesome beta Ocean23. She has elite editing skillz:D

Disclaimer: I do not, by any means, own Naruto.

* * *

It would be very difficult to get Sai to come with him, Kakashi was beginning to realize.

"Why don't you come, Sai?" Kakashi asked, pretending that he didn't have a secret plan that hinged on Sai being there.

"I am not hungry," Sai replied. He knew something was up when Sakura had asked Naruto out for ramen; usually it was Naruto doing the asking, not the other way around. Sai decided, then and there, that he wasn't budging until Kakashi spilled the beans, so to speak.

"But you haven't eaten all day! Sakura'll have a fit when she finds out!"

"What does that have to do with anything? Sakura asked Naruto out for ramen. If she had wanted me along, why not ask me?" Sai asked plainly, hoping to catch Kakashi at his own game.

"Oh, well, you weren't around, so she sent me to come ask you while she and Naruto went on ahead," Kakashi said, brain thinking up the little white lie quickly. Well, it was partially the truth; Sakura had sent him to ask Sai to join them.

"I was only one floor below them, though. I could hear them talking through the window."

Silently cursing Sai's good ears, Kakashi scrambled to come up with another excuse.

"Why don't you just tell me the truth, Kakashi? Sakura didn't ask Naruto to go with her just because she wanted to; she's up to something, and I think that you know something about it." Sai's sudden comment made Kakashi's head jerk up in wide-eyed surprise. Was Sai catching on to their plan?

"What?" Kakashi said, trying to bluff his way through this new situation. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"I will not go unless you tell me." Looking at the young man, Kakashi could tell that Sai looked serious (or at least more serious than usual). Shaking his head, Kakashi decided that it was best to just get it all out in the open; otherwise, the night would get no where fast.

"We were planning on going separately and sitting together. Sakura and I were going to bail a little while later so that you and Naruto would be on a date without any extra people around." Looking down at the ground in shame, he was surprised at the look on Sai's usually stoic face upon looking back up. Was that...a real smile?

Yes, it most certainly was, and it stayed there when Sai responded that yes, he would go. It wasn't hard to tell that he was trying to not sound excited.

"So you admit you have feelings for Naruto?" Kakashi asked slyly.

"I thought that was why you put this scheme together," Sai said simply as he walked out the door. Kakashi followed quickly behind him.

_'I hope Sakura hasn't killed Naruto yet.'_

xXx

Sakura sighed as she watched Naruto go through his fifth bowl of ramen. _'I wonder what's taking them so long.' _Looking out the window, she was shocked to see Kakashi standing outside, waving his arms around like an idiot. Her response was to face-palm, then calmly tell Naruto that she needed to use the ladies' room.

"Otay Saqra-tan," he said, mouth full..

_'That is disgusting.' _Sakura thought. She started towards the bathroom, looking back to see if Naruto wasn't paying attention. She was sure he wasn't, she ran quickly out of the exit. "What the hell are you thinking?" she whispered to Kakashi.

"Sai knows about the plan; he wants to go in alone," Kakashi whispered back.

"Why did you tell him?" she whisper-yelled.

"He said he wouldn't go unless I told him! He saw you leaving with Naruto." He whisper-yelled back at her.

"Do you think he will blow it?" she asked him.

"No, I don't think he will." Sai's voice said behind her. Turning to look, she couldn't help but gawk; the guy was wearing a black suit, white shirt, and black tie with matching dress shoes. Not a bad look for him, to be honest.

"Sai, don't you think you are a little over-dressed?" Sakura asked him.

"No," he said, picking up a basket off the ground and also holding a clothing bag filled with another tux.

"Okay then, I guess we are gonna go home. Don't forget that we have another mission tomorrow." Kakashi told him. Sai merely nodded.

Sakura and Kakashi headed home holding hands. Sure, their plan didn't go as planned, but it had worked out in the end.

Naruto sat at the bar, waiting for Sakura to return. Instead, he was greeted by a sharply-dressed Sai.

"Put this on," Sai told him, holding out the clothing bag.

"But-" Naruto started.

"Don't ask, just do," Sai told him. He looked askance at his teammate, but in the end, Naruto headed off to put on the suit.

Sitting down on one of the bar stools, Sai pulled out a book and started reading. The title of the book? _How to Plan the Perfect Date._

_Step 1: Wear formal clothing. _Check, he told himself.

_Step 2: Go to a romantic location such as; a field with flowers or a fancy restaurant. _Sai decided to check it anyway.

_Step 3: If you chose the first one, make a homemade meal to take with you; if you chose the latter, order something you know that the person would like. _Well, it is something Naruto would like but, it isn't exactly homemade, Sai told himself. Naruto came out in a suit similar to Sai's but with an orange tie, but still wearing his Leaf hitai-ate. Walking over to the blonde ninja, Sai simply reached up and removed the trademark headband from Naruto's forehead before placing it in the boy's breast pocket, smiling a true smile for the second time that day.

"You look nice, Naruto."

"Uhmm, th-thank y-you Sai." Naruto stuttered. _'He called me by my first name?' _Naruto wondered to himself.

They hadn't been walking long when Naruto asked where they were heading. "It's a surprise" was the only reply he got.

Thinking back to his book, Sai remembered one piece of advice that they'd offered: _When walking with your date, grab their hand and hold it until you get to your destination. _Nodding inwardly, Sai grabbed Naruto's hands and gently caressed his fingers. Naruto blushed, but he didn't let go; he even gave a slight squeeze in return. Sai smiled and led him through a forest until they came to an over-large clearing lit by chakra lamps. In the middle of the clearing was a small table with a chair on each side. Naruto looked around in awe; it was probably the most beautiful place he had ever seen.

"When did you have time for this Sai?" Naruto asked him.

"When you were waiting for Sakura. Do you like it?"

"Like it? No. I love it." Naruto told him. Pulling him over to the table, Sai pulled out a chair for Naruto, who smiled and sat down. Pushing the seat back in, Sai set his basket on top of the table and pulled out two take-out boxes of beef ramen. Placing one in front of each spot, Sai sat down, both boys bowing and saying a thank you before opening the boxes and starting to eat.

Naruto ate slowly for once, not wanting to embarrass himself in front of Sai. It was surprising when Sai held out a bite of his ramen towards Naruto, but he just accepted it with a smile and simply returned the favour. It continued to happen at random intervals throughout the meal until all of the ramen was gone.

"So, what book did you get this out of?" Naruto asked curiously.

"The only things that I got out of my book were our attire, location, food, and the hand-holding on the way here," Sai told him honestly. Naruto got wide-eyed.

"So, all the other stuff, was all you?"

"Yes. To be honest, I really like you, Naruto." Sai told him. Naruto's mouth dropped, but then he smiled and jumped across the table. He landed on Sai, arms around his neck.

"I think I like you too Sai." Naruto told him and sealed it with a kiss. Sai kissed him back and wrapped his arms around his waist. When they pulled away from each other Sai said, "We should be getting home soon. We do have a mission tomorrow." Naruto grumbled and got off of him.

"I guess you are right." Naruto said, helping Sai up. Sai smiled happily to himself about the night's events.

They went home, hand in hand.

It was kind of funny that even though they were ninja, they never noticed the two people in the trees watching them.


	11. Authors Note: Happy Halloween!

A/N: I would like to wish everyone a Happy Halloween. I hope everyone is safe and careful tonight and that you all get tons of candy!

I want to thank everyone who has; reviewed, liked, or favorited my stories. I promise I will update soon, I have just been super busy and I hope everyone understands. Anyway, Thank You for supporting me. I didn't think any of this would happen when I posted the first chapter of Stuck in the Past but, I am glad it did. I have met lots of nice people here and I enjoy talking with them. Enjoy yourselves tonight everyone!


	12. Chapter 11

Special thanks to my beta Ocean23, who is clearly an awesome person for dealing with me:D Time to thank my lovely reviewers! Go further down for the chapter!

ULaurx: I like your reviews, some of them make me laugh! I am glad you are enjoying the story so far. In my opinion, I shouldn't of had to defend my works because I put what it was about in the description but, I am glad you liked it nonetheless. I am super sorry it rained! It rained here too so, I couldn't go out. I am sure your Jeff the killer costume looked amazing though! Keep reviewing please! I love them!

CherryTree230: I will try to make a completely awesome KakaSaku centered chappy for you! You have been here from the very beginning and I am glad you stuck around!

Laurie: I am really glad you keep coming back and reading the story. I see your name, read the comment and automatically approve it. Thanks a whole lot for reading Stuck in the Past!

Kashi: I am glad you think so!

Guest: See chapter 10.

And thats it! Thank you all for reading, favoriting, following, and reviewing this story. I love you guys!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto and if I did, Kakashi and Sakura would be together.

* * *

After they were sure that Naruto and Sai wouldn't hear them, Kakashi and Sakura burst out laughing. Really, Naruto could be so clueless.

At least they knew he would treat Sai right, and teach him how to understand the new emotions Sai was discovering day by day.

Walking home hand in hand, they smiled, not only to themselves, but each other as well. Sure, they were in the past with no visible way of getting home, but somehow it had pulled them together instead of pushing them apart. They could die tomorrow for all they knew, but right now they had each other, and for now that was enough. It was a good thing that Naruto and Sai were together now. And after all, who better to understand what their team was going through than the members of that very team?

Glad that their plan had worked, Kakashi and Sakura walked on, enjoying each other's company and the silence around them. Neither dared to say a word; they knew what the other was mulling over. What would happen in the future? Things were fine at the moment; no one knew that Kakashi and Sakura had once been teacher and student. Naruto and Sai would be fine because there was no age difference between them; Kakashi, on the other hand, was fourteen years older than Sakura, and even though Sakura was fine with it, Kakashi felt like an old geezer chasing after a younger woman.

It wasn't himself he was worried about, either; it was Sakura and her reputation. Sakura was a world-renowned medic ninja, had received proposals from almost every clan and rich nobleman, and had even surpassed Tsunade in a lot of ways. Who was he to take such a woman from the market? He looked at her and noticed her smiling up at him. Not a care in the world. All that mattered in her eyes was that he was right there beside her; the rest of the world would deal with her fists if they had a problem with it.

Looking back, he could remember how little he had respected her when she'd been in her Sasuke-fangirl stage. After Sasuke left, she has grown into a wonderful kunoichi that any parent or teacher would be proud of. She never talked of boys or girly things. He was grateful for that, at least. He regretted how he'd not taken her very seriously in the past, but he hadn't been able to stand being close to young women or even girls after Rin's death. He had also regretted underestimating Rin the way he had.

Looking down at the pink head leaning on his shoulder, he told himself, 'I should really stop underestimating the women in my life.'

XxX

The next morning, Naruto woke up only to see Sai looking down at him. He was about to scream bloody murder when he suddenly remembered last night's events. Smiling sheepishly, he looked around and noticed that he was in Sai's bed instead of his own.

"You were so tired last night that you followed me here and fell asleep on the bed.I couldn't just throw you out." Sai told him plainly, smiling sincerely for once.

'Hope he smiles like that more often,' Naruto told himself. 'It's at least better than his old creepy one.' Getting out of bed, it didn't take long for an absolutely wonderful scent to fill his nostrils.

"RAMEN!" He yelled, springing up and running out the bedroom door, only to come face to face with...a wall. Leave it to Naruto to run into a wall in his rush to get ramen. Sai couldn't help but chuckle, which earned him a death glare from the one currently peeling himself off of the wall.

Sakura and Kakashi, of course, just happened to come around the corner at that exact moment. "Hahaha! Naruto, you clutz!" she said, almost falling over with how hard she was laughing. Kakashi, on the other hand, looked from Naruto, to the wall, and then back to Naruto, not a sound coming from him as he turned to Sakura.

"Sakura, it isn't nice to laugh at your team mate's expense." He scolded, voice clearly in sensei-mode. She glared at him, her annoyance quickly becoming clear from the veins starting to show on her forehead. Of course, she punched him upside the head for his comment, and then quickly punched Naruto for laughing when he laughed at Kakashi's plight. It wasn't the usual hitting-Naruto-because-he's-an-idiot punch either; it was a simple how-dare-you-laugh-at-my-boyfriend-you-will-die-fo r-that sort of punch. It was hard to tell the difference, though, considering just how much Sakura was doing that these days.

After getting up and going to get some ice for his sore cheek, it was hardly surprising that Naruto had completely forgotten about the ramen.

XxX

Minato was furious.

He had been waiting at the training grounds all day, waiting for Naruto. And the kid still hadn't shown up yet. Soon, he'd had enough of waiting; he knew where Naruto was staying, he knew how to get there, and he was going to go there and find out just what was holding up his new student.

He'd barely taken a step when a kunai whizzed out of nowhere...and flew right over his shoulder. He heard the thunk of the kunai hitting the tree behind him, and was just a little too slow in turning towards the sound to see the end of the rope the kunai had cut disappear into the tree top. Suddenly, he was hanging upside down, dangling from the most simple trap in the book, and the very same type of trap as what Kakashi had once used on Naruto.

'What the hell?' Minato laughed to himself. Such a stupid trick! So Naruto really think he could catch the Yellow Flash with a mere rope trap? Grabbing a kunai and cutting himself down, Minato was silemtly laughing at Naruto's overconfidence when...he found himself upside-down once more, courtesy of the the second rope trap Naruto had hidden underneath the first.

Throwing one of his special kunai to the ground, Minato was able to use his signature teleportation jutsu to get out of this second trap and back onto the ground. He quickly realized just how prepared Naruto had been, however, when his body ended up at the bottom of a deep hole the boy had somehow managed to dig without anyone noticing. 'He sure is persistant.' Minato thought. "Naruto the joke is over. Let me up now." Minato yelled.

He heard laughter and looked up to see Naruto grinning like a manaic. "Teach me an awesome jutsu Minato-Sensei and I will let you out." Naruto told him honestly.

"Okay, okay. I will teach you a justsu I have been working on; just let me out." Minato said back in annoyance.

"Tell me the jutsu's name first," Naruto asked him.

"Rasengan. Please let me out now." Minato pleaded. Naruto smiled to himself.

'Score!' Naruto thought before helping his father out. 'Now I can use it in the Chunin exams!'

With Minato out of the hole, he quickly taught Naruto Rasengan. Completely surprised that the boy learned it so quickly, he told him that training was over.

He really needed to get home before Kushina killed him.


	13. Chapter 12

Thanks to my wonderful beta Ocean23, whose ideas have improved this story a whole bunch! Enjoy the chapter you guys!

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto and if I did you would all get a cookie!

* * *

Rin stood at the entrance to Training Ground #3, waiting almost impatiently for her new sensei to arrive. 'Where the heck is Sakura-sensei?' she wondered. Rin was eager to begin learning whatever it was Sakura-sensei had to teach her...but how could she learn anything if her teacher didn't even show up? At that moment, however, Sakura appeared, making her entrance in true ninja style by appearing in a puff of smoke.

"Hi!" She said cheerfully. Rin looked at her watch and sighed; she was actually on time.

"What are we doing today, Sakura-sensei?" Rin asked curiously.

"We are going to..."

Rin felt her excitement climb. Would she be learning an awesome new jutsu, or maybe some new way to disarm an enemy?

"...climb trees."

"What?" Rin said unhappily, forgetting to hide her disappointment.

"We're going to climb trees," Sakura repeated firmly. Seeing the doubt and disappointment in Rin's face, Sakura added, "You want to be a medic ninja, don't you?" Rin nodded. "Then you need to learn how to control your chakra and how to focus it. If you can't control your chakra, then what's the point in even learning to become a healer? Healers need very fine chakra control to do what they do, but even they had to start somewhere."

A new understanding dawned on Rin's face as she absorbed what Sakura-sensei had just said.

"Alright, now that that's settled, here's what you have to do. First, focus your chakra in your feet. Then, you are gonna climb this tree. When you get as high as you can possibly go, use this-" she held up a kunai "-to scratch a mark into the bark. This will help you see how high you can go, and maybe motivate you to try and aim to get higher on the tree the next time. You will stop at the highest branch. Do you understand?" Sakura asked.

"Yes, Sakura-sensei," she said as she ran toward the tree. Doing as her new teacher had told her, she focused her chakra in her feet almost the moment she started running. She managed to get halfway up the tree before she felt a little thing called gravity start to kick in. Scratching her kunai against the tree trunk, she managed to gouge a mark into the bark before she fell away from the tree, landing on her butt when she hit the ground.

'Oww!' She inwardly groaned. She looked at her sensei, who was sitting on a tree branch... reading a medical book. Annoyed at being so blatantly ignored, Rin threw a kunai at her teacher, hoping to at the very least get her sensei's attention. Sakura, on the other hand, glanced toward the oncoming kunai, glaring in slight irritation. Then, as nonchalantly as if she were walking down the street, she lifted up her arm, infused it with chakra, and promptly chopped the kunai in half with her raised hand. Rin simply stared at Sakura, the awe showing in her eyes.

"How did you do that?" Rin asked incredulously.

"Chakra scalpels," Sakura replied boredly, attention already turning back to her book.

"Will you teach me that, Sakura-sensei?" Rin asked, looking hopeful.

"When you master chakra control," Sakura told her seriously. "So, the faster you walk up that tree, the faster you learn new techniques." Rin nodded and continued to try and get up the tree.

XxX

Kakashi watched Rin's training from afar. It was already clear to him that Sakura was better at this than he was. He remembered teaching her how to control her chakra, and the way she'd mastered it on her first try.

He looked up toward the sky, and at the gathering clouds on the horizon. It's going to rain soon. Turning away from Rin and Sakura, he once again focused his attention on the young boy who was now supposed to be his student. Releasing the genjutsu he'd used on the boy, he watched in silence as Obito slowly woke up and checked his surroundings.

Where is Yuki-Sensei? The boy thought as he looked around.

Kakashi, or Yuki as he was known to his young pupil, appeared silently behind Obito, hands held behind his back. "You do not need the Sharingan to be a powerful ninja," he told the boy.

Obito looked up, wide-eyed. Where did that come from? How could he possibly know about his family troubles? He never told anyone what happened at home.

"My parents think I am weak without it," he told Kakashi.

"They are wrong; the Sharingan is a thing that not many ninja have to start with, and yet many of them go on to be great in their own way. I won't say this again: you have the ability to be a great ninja without the Sharingan. No one else is going to do it for you," 'Yuki' said as he pulled out a piece of paper. Obito looked at the paper, then Kakashi, and back to the paper.

"Eh, Sensei. What's that for?" Obito asked curiously.

"This paper comes from a special tree that has constantly been fed chakra for most, if not all, of its life. Because of this, paper made from that tree has a special power; when exposed to your chakra, it will tell you what chakra element you have." To demonstrate, Kakashi focused his chakra into the paper, and it started to crinkle. "You see that? That means that I have a lightning element to my chakra. Different chakra elements, or types, cause the paper to respond in different ways. Fire-type chakra will ignite the paper; wind will slice it; water, and the paper will become damp; earth, and the paper will turn to dirt.

Kakashi handed another paper to Obito. "Infuse a little of your chakra into the paper and let me see what you element is." Obito focused as hard as he could into his two fingers, then his hand felt hot, almost as if it were on fire. He opened his eyes and the paper had turned into ash. He looked up at the older male. "This means I have fire element, right, Yuki-sensei?"

"Right, Obito. Now let us begin our training." He told the boy, eyes crinkling happily.

XxX

Sakura stood at the entrance to the training grounds, waiting for Kakashi and Obito. Rin had already left to spend time with her parents.

Today was March 28th, Sakura's birthday.

Kakashi, Naruto, and Sai probably forgot. It's hard to keep up with the date while we are here. I am nineteen today, she thought as she looked up at the stars. There were plenty of bright stars tonight and she had the urge to wish on one of them. Completely lost in her thoughts, she didn't see the three figures running along the trees toward her. Soon she was to find out...that these would be the last people she could ever have expected to see in the past, or together at all.

In the distance, the incoming clouds opened up. The rain started pouring.


End file.
